1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a cleaning device and, more particularly, to a device for cleaning bottles, especially baby bottles and nipples for such bottles.
2. Description of the Prior Art
U.S. Pat. No. 5,214,820 to Shumway, et al., titled Dish Scrubber, is directed to a bottle brush having a scrubber. This patent is incorporated herein by reference. The assignee of the present invention is licensed under U.S. Pat. No. 5,214,820.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a cleaning device.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a cleaning device that has a handle and a sponge attached to the handle for cleaning the interior of a baby or infant or other bottle.
It is still another object of the present invention to provide such a cleaning device in the form of a bottle brush that has a nipple brush attached to the handle for cleaning a nipple.
It is a further object of the present invention to provide such a cleaning device in the form of a bottle brush that has a handle attaching mechanism for removably attaching the sponge to the handle.
It is a further object of the present invention to provide a cleaning device having a nipple cleaning element secured to a handle and a container cleaning element removably attached to the handle such that the nipple cleaning element is housed interior of the container cleaning element while the latter is attached to the handle.
These and other objects of the present invention are achieved by, and the invention is directed to a bottle/nipple cleaning device that has a handle, a sponge for cleaning the interior of a baby, infant or other bottle, and a nipple brush attached to the handle for cleaning a nipple. A hollow core is inserted into an elongated hole or bore formed into the sponge, or into another hole-providing device such as another core positioned in, and secured to the interior of the sponge. The core has a handle attaching mechanism for removably attaching the sponge and handle attaching mechanism of the core to the handle. The core attaching mechanism includes a core extension that protrudes from the sponge when the main body of the core is mounted in and secured to the sponge. The extension has a pair of opposed tabs, preferably integral with the core extension at one end of the tab and free at the other end of the tab. The core extension or at least a portion of it fits into the end of the handle. The end of the handle preferably has two arcuate cutouts therein to receive portions of the tabs. Each tab has a raised portion, preferably a pad extending from the sponge end of the core extension and that terminates preferably in an arcuate edge part-way along the tab, and a raised ridge at the far end of the tab. The end portion of the handle has opposed slots therein. Each slot is adapted to receive the ridge of a tab. As the extension and tabs or as the tabs are inserted axially into the open end of the handle, the preferably beveled, rounded or angled leading edges of the ridges engage the distal or terminal end and/or an interior surface of the wall of the handle. This depresses the ridges and tabs inwardly toward each other until, with rotational movement, if necessary, the raised portions or pads of the tabs enter the cutouts and the ridges move outwardly into their respective slots. This engages and secures the core extension to the handle. The tabs are depressable inwardly toward each other against the bias of the plastic or polymeric rigid structural material of which they are made. The bias forces the ridges of the tabs outward into the slots to maintain the securement of the core extension to the handle. Movement of the tabs inward against the bias permits the tabs to be removed from the cutouts and the ridges from the slots and allows the core and sponge to be removed from the handle.
The above and other objects of the invention are also achieved by, and the invention is also directed to a cleaning device that is comprised of a handle and a nipple cleaning element. The handle has a proximal end for being grasped by a user, a distal end and a distal end portion, the distal end and distal end portion having a wall, a recess defined by the wall, and mounting means located in the recess for mounting a nipple cleaning element to the mounting means.
The nipple cleaning element is suitable for cleaning the interior of a nipple of the type used in connection with a baby bottle. The nipple cleaning element is comprised of a proximal end, a distal end, and means for securing the nipple cleaning element to the mounting means of the handle such that the proximal end of the nipple cleaning element is located in the recess of the handle and the distal end of the nipple cleaning element protrudes beyond the distal end of the handle.
The wall of the distal end portion of the handle can have an inside surface and a plurality, e.g., at least one pair of opposed reliefs that extend radially outwardly into the inside surface of the wall. The reliefs can be selected from the group consisting of grooves, apertures, e.g. slots and/or cutouts, and a combination of grooves and apertures. The wall can have a pair of opposed apertures that extend in an axial direction through the wall. The axially extending apertures can be a pair of opposed cutouts, each cutout having an open entrance end at the distal end of the handle and that extends in a proximal direction axially along a portion of the wall. The distal end portion of the wall of the handle can have a pair of opposed reliefs, and the pair of opposed cutouts and the pair of opposed reliefs can be axially aligned with each other and axially spaced from each other along the wall of the handle.
The objects of the invention are also achieved by, and the invention is also directed to a cleaning member for use with the handle of a cleaning device. The cleaning member is comprised of a cleaning element having an elongated axial dead end bore, and an elongated core. The core can include an elongated main body having a first end and that is disposed in the bore and is secured to the cleaning element, and an extension that extends from and beyond the main body in an axial direction opposite to the first end. The extension can have an open end, an elongated channel that extends from the open end axially into the interior of the extension, and a plurality of opposed axially elongated tabs, each having an outer surface and a free end. Each of the opposed tabs has a normal position, and is movable from the normal position inward toward the channel and biased to return to the normal position. Each of the opposed tabs includes at least one protuberance that extends outwardly beyond the outer surface of the tab. The at least one protuberance can extend in an axial direction on the tab, and it can comprise a pad, and the at least one protuberance can extend in a transaxial direction on the tab and it can comprise a ridge.
The outer surface of the main body of the core can have a plurality of outwardly extending ribs that are axially spaced from one another to assist in securing the cleaning element to the core. The main body can have a wall with a hole in it that communicates with the channel of the core to permit drainage of liquid from the channel.
The objects of the invention are also achieved by and the invention is further directed to a cleaning device that is comprised of a handle and a cleaning member that is removably attached to the handle. The handle can have a proximal grasping end, a distal end, a distal end portion, and a wall, the wall having an interior surface that defines a recess that extends from the distal end axially into the distal end portion of the handle. The interior surface of the wall can have a plurality of reliefs therein. The cleaning member can be comprised of a core that is removably attached to the handle, and an elongated first cleaning element that is secured to the core. The core can have a main body and an extension that extends from the main body and is disposed in the recess of the handle. The extension has a plurality of axially extending radially outwardly biased tabs, each having at least one protuberance that fits in and frictionally engages a relief in the interior surface of the wall of the handle, to removably attach the cleaning member to the handle. The plurality of tabs are movable inwardly against their bias to disengage the protuberances from the reliefs and permit removal of the cleaning element from the handle.
The first cleaning element can be a cylindrical sponge that is suitable for cleaning the interior of a container for feeding liquid to a baby. The handle can include an elongated second cleaning element having a distal end and a proximal end, wherein the proximal end is secured to the handle within the recess such that the distal end of the cleaning element protrudes from the distal end of the handle, and is housed in the channel of the core when the cleaning member is attached to the handle. The second cleaning element of the handle can be a brush that is suitable for cleaning the interior of a nipple for feeding a baby.
The pair of opposed reliefs can be cutouts in the distal end of the wall of the handle and that extend in an axial direction long the wall and preferably are conically shaped when seen in plan view, and/or the reliefs can be slots that extend in a transaxial direction through the wall of the handle and preferably are rectangular when seen in plan view. The cutouts and slots can be axially aligned with each other and axially spaced from one another along the wall of the handle.
The at least one protuberance on each of the tabs can comprise a pad that extends in an axial direction along the tab and preferably is conically shaped when seen in plan view, and/or the at least one protruberance can comprise a ridge that extends in a transaxial direction across the tab and preferably is rectangular when seen in plan view.
Each of the plurality of opposed tabs preferably includes two protuberances, one a transaxial ridge, and another an axial pad. Each of the plurality of opposed tabs preferably has a proximal free end, and a distal end that is joined to the main body of the core, wherein the at least one transaxial ridge is located adjacent the free end of the opposed tab, and the at least one axial pad is located adjacent the distal end of the tab. Preferably the ridge and pad of a tab are axially aligned, and the transaxial lengths of the ridges of the tabs are shorter than the transaxial lengths of the open entrance ends of the cutouts. The ridges can have leading edges facing away from the main body and that are adapted to move axially into and fit into the open entrance ends of the cutouts, such that when the opposed tabs of the extension of the core are aligned with the open entrance ends of the cutouts of the handle and the core and the handle are moved toward one another, the ridges enter the cutouts such that the edges of the cutouts engage and depress the ridges and the tabs inward toward the channel to enable the ridges to enter the recess and slidingly engage the interior surface of the wall of the handle until the ridges move outwardly into and seat in the slots and the pads of the tabs enter into and seat in the cutouts of the handle, to removably attach the core of the cleaning element to the handle. Preferably the ridges have surfaces and portions that are chamfered, and these chamfered surfaces and portions and the conically shaped pads and cutouts allow the core to be manually rotated relative to the handle to cause the interior surface of the wall of the handle to ride over the pads and the ridges, depress the opposed tabs toward the channel and allow removal of the core from the handle without need of direct manual depression of the pads of the opposed tabs.
The foregoing and other objects and advantages of the present invention will be more apparent from the following detailed explanation of the preferred embodiments of the invention taken in connection with the drawings.